Member Reviews
Rooted in history but with creative license, Jeanne Mackin paints a vivid portrayal of Picasso and the women who wove in and out of his life. Though Picasso's story is well known, here we see him through the eyes of the women in his life. Told in alternative timelines and points of view, we spend time in 1953 with Alana, a journalist, who is interviewing Sara Murphy as she reflects back on the summer of 1923, when she spent in the South of France with Picasso. The story is engaging and I appreciate that the women are kept at the forefront of this story. Picasso may be the great artist remembered by history but it's these women who are the stars of this book. Lots of famous names pop up during the tale and it was easy to imagine myself drinking in Parisian cafes with the famous writers and artists of the Los Generation.
Many thanks to Berkley & Netgalley for the ARC.
I will admit I have not read much about Pablo Picasso beyond admiring his art. It was a little disappointing to read this book and realize how cold and callous he could be. The story started a little slowly for me, but once it centered around the fictional character of Alana I was much more interested and I breezed through the story. Alana wants to be a reporter for an art publication and her trial piece is to write something different than everyone else about Pablo Picasso. She knows this is an impossible task but she is determined to get the career she’s dreamed of in the times when women weren’t encouraged careers. And Alana has a place to start, she found an article her mother had saved naming one of the lovers of Pablo and she lives a day trip away. Alana finds more than she could have dreamed and learns not only about Picasso but herself.
It’s actually how shockingly little I knew about Picasso’s private life. I felt like I read this book while actively keeping a search bar open on my phone searching names and info. While this is historical fiction there is a lot drawn from real life and it was utterly fascinating! This was a well done historical fiction that had me thirsty for more knowledge!
Huge thank you to @berkleypub @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks @dg_reads @prhaudio and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Picasso's Lovers by Jeanne Mackin is a great fictional story of Picasso. For someone who doesn't have much knowledge of Picasso or artists for that matter, it was very intriguing. This historical fiction brought the characters to life in real time and delivered on all the art elements. You can tell this author put in the research. The author has a way with words transporting the reader to Europe and bringing the words off the pages to immerse the reader. Again, this is a fiction read but I truly felt as if all the characters really existed in the 1950's time frame. I will read from this author again!
Picasso's Lovers started slowly for me. When it started focusing more on the fictional character of Alana, I enjoyed it much more. Alana is in her late 20s in 1953. She is trying to make it as a writer in a male-dominated world. Her fiance wants her to quit writing when they marry and become his help-mate to advance his legal career. While he offers stability, his traditional values make her feel more like his staff than an equal partner. One of the freelance jobs Alana is trying to get is an article on Pablo Picasso for a prestigious art magazine. To develop a unique perspective on such a well-known man, Alana interviews a wealthy socialite who had been friends with Picasso in 1923. Alana finds herself attracted to another man who owns an inn where she is staying for the interview and begins to question her engagement.
While listening to the socialite, Alana learns of her possible connection to one of the women in Picasso's orbit in 1923. This leads to further investigation, including a trip to France to meet the artist in person. Along the way, the reader learns of many affairs and rivalries between women who were some of Picasso's lovers. Family secrets are exposed, friendships tested, and a whole lot of guilt spread around. There is also a side story about McCarthyism, freedom of expression, and civil rights.
Pablo Picasso was a well-known womanizer, philanderer, and adulterer. In her notes, Jeanne Macklin points out that he is an artist we love to hate or hate to love. He was emotionally cruel and insensitive to many of the women. While studying Picasso, Alana decides what qualities she wants in a man for a long and healthy relationship.
𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐏𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐨’𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐉𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐭, 𝐇𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐇𝐮𝐛𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐫
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝟐𝟑, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you #partners @uplitreads @prhaudio @berkleypub for my #gifted copies of Picasso’s Lovers! #PRHAudioPartner #PRHAInfluencer
Picasso’s Lovers by Jeanne Mackin was a beautifully written and researched historical fiction novel. On top of containing historical fiction elements, it also contained romance and a hint of mystery. I was so hooked from the first page that I read this book in one day. Mackin did such a beautiful job painting a portrait of Picasso and some of his lovers. This book is without a doubt a five star read and one I highly recommend!
In 1953, Alana Olsen has been tasked with writing a profile on Picasso. As a female in a post-war, male dominated work environment, she has a lot to prove. She’s always felt a connection to Picasso, thanks to her late mother who for some reason displayed his work throughout their house. Alana’s mother was very private and did not share many details about herself, leaving many questions after her death. In order to get more information on the famous artist, and possibly her mother, Alana follows a lead from something she found in her mothers possessions, and reaches out to Sara Murphy, who spent time with Picasso and his family along the French Riviera in 1923. Murphy is able to provide Alana with more details than she ever expected, and more leads, including Irene Legut. Will the hidden details, art work, and past romances bring Alana more information than she ever imagined about Picasso and her connection to him?
I loved how there was a mystery element throughout this book, and it really kept me so engaged with the storyline. On top of that, I really enjoyed the subplots related to Alana and her own romance and the relevant time period details on communism in America. All of the details were brought together so well to paint such a beautiful novel.
𝐏𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐨’𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬:
🎨Historical Fiction
🎨Mystery and Romance Elements
🎨Multiple POVs
🎨Dual Timeline
🎨Beautifully Written
🎧I alternated between the physical book and the audiobook. Talk about an epic cast of narrators! Hewitt, Huber, and Messer were the perfect trio to narrate this book and I loved my time listening to the three bring this story to life. I love audiobooks with multiple narrators, and these three complemented one another so well. This audiobook was so well done and I highly recommend it if you are looking for an engaging historical fiction book!
Posted on Goodreads on January 8, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around January 23, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on January 23, 2024
**-will post on designated date
Picasso's Lovers by Jeanne Mackin
I was apprehensive about reading this book because I did not want to end up in Picasso's bed, even through a book. I knew he had women, lots of women, but I'm not sure I realized the scope of his use of women. They were his art but also his appetite. The two were intertwined and his use of women doesn't make me like him better. In the end, I'm not sure there were any women who were happy with Picasso since being with Picasso meant being a part of his indifference, cruelty, neglect, and abandonment as he moved from one to the other. To be one of his women meant to be dropped at one point or another. There were women who finally rejected him but it seems it was through his rejection of ever being monogamous, even as he was chasing a woman, they knew he'd move on quickly. I admit, I haven't studied Picasso to a great extent but what I have learned about him doesn't endear me to his way of treating women. His art is something else although I don't feel enlightened enough to speak about his art.
Picasso's Lovers only touches on a few of the women in his life but it does a really good job of showing me the trials of being caught in Picasso's lust, even for a short time. This story intertwines real people in Picasso's life with the fictional characters of Anna and Alana. I enjoyed the way the story is told, not all the focus is on Picasso but instead it's on some of the women who were touched by him and painted by him. In fact, the single woman in a picture he's painted may not be just one woman he is painting but a mixture of many women in his life. It seems his life, his work, his "loves" are all intermingled, at least in this story.
In 1953, Alana is trying to gather the information she needs to write an article about Picasso. But she has an ulterior motive for wanting to know more about this man. Sadly he's very closed off at this late point in his life. He's had the riches, the fame, the women (although he'll always have more women) and he's not someone who will be open to speaking with a lowly American journalist. Luckily Sara Murphy is willing to speak to Alana and she knows so very much about Picasso and the summer of 1923.
The French Riviera in 1923, was a summer that was supposed to be a time of rest and relaxation for Sara and her husband, even a time for Sara to put distance between their friend, Picasso and themselves. But Picasso followed, along with several of his followers and much happens that is to never be spoken of again. Still, Alana is going to try to find out what she can of this time, and through her we learn more about a few of the women in Picasso's life. I liked this way of learning more about the man, I can admire his talent from afar and I can see how knowing the history of each of his paintings, if the background can be deciphered, makes his art even more interesting. I enjoyed the story much more than I expected to enjoy it because there is a part of me that can see the magnetism that drew so many women to him, while I still don't like the man.
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC.
Picasso’s art was revolutionary and transformative. It’s not that he didn’t know how to paint as the “masters” did; it was that Picasso was searching for something else, something new. In the process he created and fragmented art works in a way that was unique. Searching, getting together and pulling apart also figured prominently in his relationships.
In this engrossing historical novel, Mackin brings Picasso and some of the women in his life into focus. The story is told through the lens of a journalist who spends time with Sara Murphy (also a well-known woman). What she uncovers impacts her own life as well.
I think that readers will enjoy this title set in the 1950s (think McCarthy in part) and looking back at the 20s. In addition to spending time in a glamourous world, they will also get to know the narrator as she tries to paint her own life in the way that she wants.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.
This is such a phenomenal trip through Picasso's Lovers. I have only studied his art briefly during an art history class in university. There were little mentions of his loves, his muses, the women who feel head over heels for him. One look from his dark eyes and they were hooked. They wanted to feel the gentle caress of his eyes over their bodies as he drew or painted them. Picasso could create movement and art through one single line. The grass is not straight it moves in the wind. He was an impassioned man with a huge appetite for women. I loved the dual timeline of the summer Picasso spent in Antibes, France. Crashing Sara Murphy's family vacation. The many moods of Picasso's wife who was insanely jealous, and rightly so. The telling of the story through his mistresses was brilliant. It made the story more real and wanting to smack Picasso for being such a cad.
In 1953, Alana Olson is grieving the death of her mother. A mother that never told her story. She left a single breadcrumb for Alana to follow. The name Sara Murphy. As Alana hunts for her mother's truth and for her own. She is taken back through the years to that summer on the French Riviera. The spot where many of Picasso's friendships and relationships sparked. There is so much to the story. So many hidden truths that make Alana take note of her own life and relationships. Who does she want to be and who makes her feel alive?
I loved being whisked away to France. The intense winds, the dusty heat, the smell of turpentine in the air. The history of one man and how he affected everyone around him. This book makes me want to take a dive into the history of Picasso, the art, and the man. Thank you to Berkley Publishing and Jeanne Mackin for my gifted copy of this glorious read.
Quite the provocative read.
I am not a fan of Picasso’s art or of Picasso,the person. I think Mackin presented Picasso has the selfish, lothario he was.
I liked the frame of telling a story within the story as Sara recounts the summer of 1923 to Alana.
I thought Alana was a tad bit hypocritical because she fought so hard to reject William’s expectations for her yet fell right into domesticity with someone else.
I felt the most empathy for William, although a bit staid and stuffy he was treated very unfairly and callously by Alana, who was more like her father than she even knew.
It was an interesting story and it led me to dislike Picasso even more.
I like the concept, but Picasso’s life is such a mess, and this book mirrors that, to the point it’s hard to get into.
Its no secret that Picasso was a cad and this fictional account depicts him as one. A magazine writer is looking to get an art article published as a woman when the expectation was that they were not career oriented, think 1950's. Marriage and propriety are examined while the main character and would be journalist researches Picasso and his lovers one summer in a French villa. Somewhat predictable but still interesting with gorgeous settings and a feminist flair.
Copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley
Picasso’s name has often appeared in the historical fiction novels I read that are set in the 1920s, however, the focus is usually on the writers such as Fitzgerald and Hemingway. I enjoyed learning about what Picasso’s personal life may have looked like through the eyes of the women who loved him. I found this story fascinating as there was an underlying mystery that was uncovered while a journalist was working on a story regarding a lost work of art. Told in dual timelines, the journalist pieces together information obtained by her late mother and finds connections with Picasso’s past. I appreciate the author’s research into the time periods represented in this book through the settings, political climate and the elite privilege.
Alana Olson is researching Picasso in the 1950's for her dissertation when she realizes she really wants to know more about the women who inspired his art. This research leads her to places she never expected and revelations that change her life.
I wanted to read Picasso's Lovers because I was interested in the 1920's (the earlier time period in this book) and the subject of women who inspired Picasso's art. I knew just the basic art history details about Picasso and his major works, so there was a lot that was new for me in this novel.
This is a fascinating novel, and I recommend it for fans of historical fiction, and especially for readers who are interested in art.
The writing is delightful and I love the way the author brings in the reader with the perspective of the main character.
I really didn’t know to much about Pablo Picasso other then his work as a artist. But this books blurb pulled me in along with the name Picasso.
I like reading about famous people and how they live their life’s behind closed doors and Picasso had a interesting one. Seems like to Picasso women were used as muses that he used for his art he would draw inspiration from them, paint them then have sex with them all while being married seems like that was the norm in his life. But back in the day it was a different era and different time I guess. There is so much information in this book the author did a great job you can tell researching and learning about his life.
If you are a fan of Picasso or like me just like reading about famous people life’s and what makes them tick so to speak read this he was quite the womanizer, and so much more wouldn’t it be nice to have a piece of his art work 😊. Thank you netgalley
I loved this book! I will definitely recommend it. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Thank you so much for an advanced copy of this book!
I love a good scandalous story, and I was super excited for Picasso's Lovers after reading the blurb! All I could think about the whole time I read was "what a tangled web we weave" as each romantic bad decision happened again...and again...and again! The women in this story inspired Picasso, hated him, loved him, and ultimately, were portrayed as his muses. It was truly fascinating at times the magnetic orb his character illustrated!
That being said, this book had too much going on in some places and not near enough in others, and it left me a little bored, too, which was unexpected! The writing is well-done and the character development is good, but I could never dig into the book like I expected to from the synopsis.
I think this is a good story that could have been great, but I can't my finger on what's holding it back. It was very entertaining, though, so I highly recommend it!
Rating: 3⭐️
This is the story of Picasso’s lovers, told from their point of view. As an art historian and writer, Alana Olson sets out to reconnect with her late mother’s memory through their mutual love of Pablo Picasso and his rich and complex history. As Alana interviews two formidable women who ran in his social circle, Sara Murphy and Irene Legut, Alana learns more about her own past, as well as her mother’s, than she ever expected to.
I found this to be such a unique story, having never read any historical fiction novels centered around famous painters. I thought Mackin did a phenomenal job of taking a lesser known figure, and pulling out the stories that make him more human, less ghost. Learning about Pablo Picasso’s philandering ways has only just begun to pique my interest, and I would have liked a little more focus on him and his background.
This story has a slower pace, and although I found the topic and overall story to be very interesting, I struggled a bit with the pacing of it. I was very engaged and curious about where the story was going throughout the first half, but felt less connected during the second half. All in all, however, I would still widely recommend this novel to all historical fiction lovers and those who are interested in major figures within the art world.
Read if you like:
•art history
•multiple povs/dual timeline
•slow burn stories
•complex MCs
•mystery components
Thank you Berkley Pub and PRH Audio for my gifted copies.
As someone who knows very little about Picasso's story, I very much looked forward to learning about his tangled web of women. Mackin's well-researched characterization captures who he seemingly was, and it was definitely informative. As with many historical fiction reads, there were layers to the plot, and the characters' stories were woven together in intriguing ways. I did find the plotline to be largely predictable (not that it promised to be full of shocking surprises), but overall a very solid read. I'd be curious to hear from reviewers who are more familiar with Picasso and have expertise in art history, but as a novice in both, I'd certainly recommend.